Sweden entered the European Union (EU) on Jan. 1, 1995, in a significant break with its traditionally aloof and neutral stance in foreign affairs. It joined the EU alongside its Nordic neighbour Finland as well as Austria, expanding the union from 12 to 15 members. Although a net contributor to EU budgets, Sweden hoped to enhance the country’s influence in Europe and increase inward investment.

One early Swedish initiative was a move to get employment targets included in EU economic strategy at the 1996 Intergovernmental Conference on the union’s future. Relations with France went sour, however, after Sweden vociferously opposed the French decision to carry out nuclear tests in the South Pacific.

For many Swedes the first months in the EU were a disappointment. They did not see any early visible benefits from membership, such as lower food prices or big regional aid programs. A backlash made itself felt in elections for the country’s 22 seats in the European Parliament in September. The anti-EU left and environment parties gained 30.1% of the vote--almost triple their support in the country’s 1994 general election. By contrast, the three parties that unequivocally supported the EU polled only 32%, and the ruling Social Democrats, whose party was split on the issue, gained just 28.1% in its worst election result since 1911. At just 41.3% of the electorate, the turnout was the lowest ever recorded in a Swedish election.

It was a difficult year for the Social Democrats, who had formed a minority government after winning elections in September 1994. In the early months of the year, the party announced a series of spending cuts and tax increases to restore the health of the state’s deficit-ridden finances. A number of the measures, including a cut in unemployment benefits, were deeply unpopular with the rank and file as well as with the party’s traditional allies in the strong trade union movement. Business leaders objected to the higher taxes. In April the Social Democrats began to cooperate with the Centre Party to gain a parliamentary majority. This was an informal pact rather than a coalition.

In August Ingvar Carlsson said he would step down as leader of the Social Democrats and prime minister in March 1996. The party leadership had hoped for a smooth succession, with the mantle of power passing to Mona Sahlin, Carlsson’s 38-year-old deputy. Sahlin’s candidacy ran into serious trouble in October, however, when she admitted using a government credit card for private purposes. The public prosecutor launched a preliminary inquiry into the matter to see if breach of trust or fraud had occurred. The name of another possible candidate for prime minister, Finance Minister Göran Persson, emerged in December.

There was better news on the economy as the recovery that began in 1994 continued into 1995. Gross domestic product (GDP) rose more than 3% during the year, mainly because of a strong performance by the country’s big exporters. Inflation peaked above 3% at midyear but then began to ease.

The country also regained the confidence of international financial markets. At the start of the year, the krona sank sharply and bond yields rose as Sweden became caught up in the turbulence that followed the crisis over the Mexican peso. From April onward, however, market analysts became convinced that the country was doing enough to tackle its debt, which climbed above 80% of GDP, and cut its budget deficit. The krona gained strength, and bond yields dropped sharply. In October Carlsson said economic growth was stronger than expected and the country would stabilize its debt as a proportion of GDP in 1995, a year ahead of an earlier forecast. Unemployment remained a serious blight; around 12% of the workforce was affected, including those in training schemes.

Carl Bildt, former prime minister and leader of the Moderate (conservative) Party, stepped into the international limelight in June when he became the EU’s peace mediator in former Yugoslavia. In August the country staged the world track and field championships in Göteborg, the biggest global sporting event of the year.

Click anywhere inside the article to add text or insert superscripts, subscripts, and special characters.
You can also highlight a section and use the tools in this bar to modify existing content:

Add links to related Britannica articles!
You can double-click any word or highlight a word or phrase in the text below and then select an article from the search box.
Or, simply highlight a word or phrase in the article, then enter the article name or term you'd like to link to in the search box below, and select from the list of results.

Note: we do not allow links to external resources in editor.
Please click the Web sites link for this article to add citations for
external Web sites.